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Beacon “wielding growing influence in state politics”

June 8, 2012 2:47PM

Friday’s Nashville Business Journal published a series of articles detailing the fight over a proposed 13 percent property tax hike in Nashville. Beacon is mentioned in all three articles (subscription required). The first is an article on the overall tax hike battle itself.

Beacon Center of Tennessee, a free-market group, proposed a range of cuts it says the Dean administration can pick from to avoid the tax increase. They include cutting subsidy to Nashville General Hospital, with President Justin Owen saying other area hospitals can absorb patients, and eliminating increases to public works, libraries and parks.Owen said the city should consider tough choices over a rushed tax increase.“If we can’t have that discussion, then we’re going to be in a world of hurt in the future,” he said, calling tax increase proponents a “cabal of special interests” vying for government money at the expense of average taxpayers.

Read the entire article, titled “Metro’s taxing dilemma,” here. The second two are features on business leaders both for and against the tax increase, the first being the Chamber of Commerce’s Bert Mathews, who endorsed the hike.

Beacon Center of Tennessee, a free-market group wielding growing influence in state politics, has knocked the chamber for supporting Dean’s agenda while accepting $300,000 annually from the city for economic development.“In order to avoid a perceived conflict of interest, we are calling on the chamber to officially refuse this handout,” Beacon said in a statement.

Finally, the third article details Beacon board member Lee Beaman’s opposition to the tax hike. Read that article at this link.